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Cutting ripstop

I was just poking around on the internet and found some info on cutting/sewing ripstop. http://www.xs4all.nl/~pdj/starting.htm This fellow uses an old Weller soldering gun. He just pounded the tip into a disc shape, filed it to a knife edge and away he went. He actually used wire, seemed to be about 12 gauge. I have an old soldering gun and tried it and when you develop the proper speed the fabric looks like it has been cut with a razor and it is sealed. You need to have a gun and not a pencil type iron and it must have a double heat range trigger. Use it on the first range which is about 20% I am pretty sure I will be putting away my lighter for good!!!

I have been wanting to try this hot cutting method. I do some eletronics work so I have several soldering irons lying around including a Hakko 936 variable temp soldering station that has a temp range from 400 - 900 *F. I also have a collection of tips. I normally cut my fabric spread out on my carpeted floor. I'm afraid that a soldering iron would leave some lasting impressions in my carpet and my wife may have something to say about that. I'll stick to using my lighter until I have a safe cutting surface to attempt this.

“Light thinks it travels faster than anything but it is wrong. No matter how fast light travels, it finds the darkness has always got there first, and is waiting for it." -Terry Pratchett

I have been wanting to try this hot cutting method. I do some eletronics work so I have several soldering irons lying around including a Hakko 936 variable temp soldering station that has a temp range from 400 - 900 *F. I also have a collection of tips. I normally cut my fabric spread out on my carpeted floor. I'm afraid that a soldering iron would leave some lasting impressions in my carpet and my wife may have something to say about that. I'll stick to using my lighter until I have a safe cutting surface to attempt this.

My wife has a big foldout cardboard cutting surface with inch/centimeter markings and several other markings that I have no idea what they are about. This thing is about 3' x 6' when it is unfolded and it is probably not expensive. I'll bet an appliance box would work as well. The point is, at the low heat range, it cuts the fabric and has no impact on the cardboard. Sweet!!!

Hot cutting would save a lot of time. I've got an radio shack soldering iron. That article mentioned tips. Does that mean his gun has changable tips?

Yes. The tips in a Weller style gun attach with two nuts. What he doesn't show is the wire is put through the nuts and a short right angle bend is made at each end. This bend is then placed into holes at the attach point on the gun. The nuts are then screwd down into the attach points making a mechanical/electrical connection to the tip. You can get replacement tips at Ace hardware and most home centers. Don't know about Radio Shack as they only seem to be interested in selling batteries these days. Went in to buy a part for an amateur radio project I was doing and had to explain what a capacitor was. Sheeze!!! http://www.cooperhandtools.com/brand...ldering%20Guns

Solder irons have a wattage rating that relates to 2 things: the temp of the tip and the ability for the iron to come back up to temp once it's applied to a surface. When you apply the iron to something the heat transfers from the tip of the iron to the material. Most solder iron from 15 watts to 35 watts have a tip temp of 700-750*F but they lack the ability to quickly recover the tip temp which means you have to wait a few seconds before the tip becomes "hot" again. Cheap soldering irons may not be the best for cutting fabric and may produce inconsistent results.

Higher wattage iron means that the tips will regain the heat faster and do a better job. Most solder iron have replaceable tips and different tips for different purposes (wood burning, stain glass, or eletronics work).

Weller is a very good brand of soldering iron and have good temp recovery times as compared to cheap Radio Shack irons. A soldering station would be the best bet as the have almost instant temp recovery and variable temps, but they are also expensive.

“Light thinks it travels faster than anything but it is wrong. No matter how fast light travels, it finds the darkness has always got there first, and is waiting for it." -Terry Pratchett

I was thinking about doing this with my POS soldering gun, but Silnylon doesn't really need to be melted, from my experience.

Sil doesn't, but DWR and untreated ripstop do. I'll be switching to a soldering gun soon for that reason, and I'll probably use it on sil too, once I get comfortable with it. I like keeping things simple - one cutting method for everything

"Physics is the only true science. All else is stamp collecting." - J. J. Thompson

Sil doesn't, but DWR and untreated ripstop do. I'll be switching to a soldering gun soon for that reason, and I'll probably use it on sil too, once I get comfortable with it. I like keeping things simple - one cutting method for everything

Yes, you are absolutely right about that. I probably should use the soldering gun for DWR, but then I guess why not use it for everything. It might save me from burning my fingers, since I won't use the lighter method any longer.

I get these disposable battery cautery units from work and they cut ripstop and webbing like a knife. One will last for quite a few projects. They're sold in most medical supply stores. Don't know if I could mail them to anybody...